Humans have actually been fasting throughout evolution.

Sometimes it was done because food was not available (famine) but also because most major religions have long maintained that fasting is good for the soul.

Fortunately (or ironically, unfortunately) most of us are living in a life of convenience and excess, we have access to all sorts of food at all hours of the day.

To understand how intermittent fasting leads to fat loss we first need to understand the difference between the fed state and the fasted state. 

The fed state is when your body is digesting and absorbing food. It starts when you begin eating and lasts for three to five hours as your body digests and absorbs the food you just ate. When you are in the fed state, it’s difficult for your body to burn fat because insulin levels are high. 

Next is the fasted state, which is a fancy way of saying that your body isn’t processing a meal. The fasted state lasts until 8 to 12 hours after your last meal. It is much easier for you body to burn fat in the fasted state because your insulin levels are low. We don’t enter the fasted state until 12 hours after our last meal, so it’s quite rare that our bodies are in this fat burning state. This is one of the reasons why many people who start intermittent fasting will lose fat without changing what they eat, how much they eat, or how often they exercise.

Fasting puts your body in a fat burning state that you rarely make it to during a normal eating schedule.

There is much research documenting the various health benefits of intermittent fasting…..

Improved insulin sensitivity: As levels of insulin drop dramatically, stored body fat becomes more accessible and is used for energy production.  IF can impede the development of diabetes by disrupting the foundation of insulin resistance in the body.

Increased production of Human Growth Hormone: The levels of human growth hormone skyrocket, increasing as much as 5-fold. This has benefits for fat loss, muscle gain, longevity, increasing energy and libido.

Enhanced cellular repair: When fasted, your cells initiate cellular repair processes. This includes autophagy, where cells digest and remove old and dysfunctional proteins that build up inside cells, clearing out waste. Intermittent fasting acts in part as a form of mild stress that continually revs up cellular defenses against molecular damage.

Gene expression: There are changes in the function of genes related to longevity and protection against disease

Increase metabolism: Because of these changes in hormones, short-term fasting may actually increase your metabolic rate by 3.6-14%

How to Daily Intermittent Fast:
This is a 16–hour fast followed by an 8–hour eating period.  It is remarkably easy to learn to not eat at certain times of the day.  The 8-hour eating period can occur at any time throughout the day.  You can start at 8am and stop at 4pm. Or you start at 2pm and stop at 10pm. Do whatever works for you.  Personally, I find it easiest to skip breakfast and break my fast at lunchtime.

***Intermittent Fasting is NOT recommended for women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or would like to become pregnant***

We do not want to send the message that we are in a period of scarcity during these times, please be kind to your body.

The post Intermittent Fasting for Health appeared first on Dr. Betsy Rice, ND.

a.  A 36 year old mother of three young children comes to the office for help with a common cold.  This is the first cold she’s had since March of 2014 and she believe she caught it from her youngest daughter.

b.  A 50 year old male (dragged into the office by his wife…) proudly states that it has been at least 10 or 15 years since his last cold.

c.  A 25 y/o female comes to the office for help with her cough and cold symptoms.  These are the same symptoms she gets every year, at the same time of year.

The “correct” answer is A!   While many people are led to believe that the absence of disease is the equivalent of health, we should be careful to make such assumptions.

When the immune system is overburdened it doesn’t have the ability to mount a response to simple cold viruses.  This was evidenced during the time of cholera (or other highly infectious diseases)…. when an epidemic swept through a  community, those who did not get ill were often plagued with chronic disease: tuberculosis, syphilis, cancer, etc.

Similarly, a person who falls ill at the same time every year or struggles with the same illness repeatedly is obviously stuck in a rut with their immune health and needs help overcoming this burden.

It is a sign of a highly normal and healthy immune system to come down with a cold at varying seasons every 9 – 18 months.

With the changing of the seasons, it’s an excellent time to re-evaluate our defense against the dreaded cold and flu season.   Here are five simple ways to keep your body healthy through the season of sickness:

1. Sleep more.  Arguably, the MOST important thing you can do for your health to prevent acute illness is to get adequate sleep.  The average adult functions best on 7-9 hours of good quality sleep each night.  When we sleep, our body repairs itself.  If we are in a sleep debt our body struggles to stay on top of repairs and healing.  Some simple strategies to promote quality sleep: stay away from electronics an hour before bedtime, dim the lights an hour before bedtime, sip a cup of relaxing warm chamomile tea, and make sure your room is completely dark at night – avoid any lights from electronics if possible.
2. Eat a real food, nutrient dense diet.  Buy foods from the periphery of the grocery store (avoid the aisles and aisles of packaged foods!).  Prepare and cook them in the warmth of your own kitchen.  Squashes and root vegetables are seasonally fresh in the fall, so cook up an acorn squash soup, or roast a pan of pumpkin.  Avoid too much sugar which can decrease the activity of your immune system for up to four hours after ingestion.
3. Wash your hands.  Although, we all know to wash our hands frequently to avoid the spread of cold and flu viruses, many of us do not take adequate time to wash our hands completely.  A simple solution is to carry an alcohol based hand sanitizer and use after touching public spaces: door handles, shopping carts, public computers.
4. Exercise daily.   Even a simple, brisk, evening stroll in the crisp, autumn air will boost the body’s ability to fight certain cold and flu viruses.  Grab your dog, your loved one, or just put on some headphones with music and walk out the front door.  Walk for half an hour to obtain the minimum amount recommended by the US Preventative Services Task Force – simply walk out your front door for 15 minutes and turn around and head back!
5. Boost your immunity.  One delectable way to increase the activity of your immune system is to try one teaspoon per day of Elderberry syrup.  The active ingredient, Sambucol, was shown to be effective in vitro against 10 strains of influenza virus.  And it tastes delicious, even children will enjoy taking their medicine!

Homemade Elderberry Syrup

• ⅔ cup black elderberries
• 3½ cups of water
• 2 Tablespoons fresh or dried ginger root
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
• ½ teaspoon cloves or clove powder
• 1 cup raw honey (we get from our farmer’s market)

Bring water, elderberries, ginger, cinnamon and cloves to boil.  Simmer covered for 45 minutes or until reduced by half, cool.   Add honey and voila!  Homemade elderberry syrup!  1tsp for kids, 1 TBSP for adults daily.

When the cold or flu strikes, take the normal dose every 3 hours until well.

Sometimes, it’s inevitable – we catch a virus and end up with a stuffy/runny nose, cough and body aches.  The best thing you can do for yourself and everyone around you is to stay home and rest.  Take a day or two off of work, drink at least half your body weight in ounces of clean water, and contact your local naturopath for some individualized care and symptom relief.

Happy Fall Season!

The post Cold and Flu Season Quiz! appeared first on Dr. Betsy Rice, ND.